can I shoot slugs out of my rem 870 turkey

[zauer]

Hi Folks,

I apologize in advance if this is a silly question, but again, I'm trying to learn more about this new shotgun. I've heard of rifled barrels being mentioned when shooting slugs. My question is, since I have the rem 870 express turkey (not the supermag), can I shoot 12 ga. slugs out of the 21" vent rib turkey barrel? Do I simply need to remove the turkey choke? Also, What is the difference between my barrel and a rifled barrel? Thanks for your help folks.

[Benjamin]

Your barrel is a smooth bore - it has no rifling.

A rifled bbl has a series of grooves cut concentric to the bore to impart spin (and thus stability) to a single projectile fired from it.

You can fire slugs through your barrel.

I would recommend removing the turkey choke and replacing it with a less tightly choked one - do not fire without a tube in place.

While you can shoot plain lead slugs through a turkey choke, it will

lead the choke
hurt your shoulder real bad
probably hurt accuracy

DO NOT shoot sabot slugs through a turkey choke. You will likely ruin the choke - these slugs are in a harder plastic collar which will not deform nearly as easily as the pure lead slugs will.

--------------------------

Well gang? Was that accurate enough?

[Dave McC]

Ben's right. Get a Skeet I or Improved Cylinder choke and try that. With the non sabot loads, lots of us have had good results with the KO Brenneke slug, but you need to test any slug you try.

Other ones good in at least one of my slug 870s include the Classic Fed and the Winchester 1 oz HP. Out of those and the Rottweil Brenneke, you'll find a keeper.

You might want to research the Archives for slugs and testing same, it's a fantastic lode of info.